RHSQ Vol. 47 No. 1 2017

RUTLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY

Quarterly

V( )LLMh 47 No, 1 _ __ ____

Women Writers of Rutland

Pressed Flowers gathered hy Julia Dorr from Stoke Pogus while on tour
in England. Handwritten notations are Julia's own notes about specifics
relating to gathering of the specimen.

RUTLAND HISTORIC 4L SOCIETY

About the Author

Stevie Billow, a Rutland native, is a member of the Smith College
class of 2019. There, Stevie is a History and Art History double ma-jor
with a concentration in Museum Studies. An avid writer and lover of
history, this is the first quarterly Stevie has written for the Rutland
Historical Society. Contact: sfbillow@gmail.com.

Introduction

In spring of 2016, Carolynn Ranftle introduced us to several perti-ne-
nt, past Rutland residents in the one-hundred and forty-seventh episode
of Historically Speaking - “Rutland Women in History”. Upon taking
on the task of writing a quarterly for the Society, it was this video that
inspired me to further investigate the lives of three Rutland women:
Julia C.R. Dorr, Edith Kellogg Dunton, and Beth Bradford Gilchrist.
Initially, my sole interest in these women was their shared career as
writers. Yet, as I learned more about each individual and discovered
the nuances of their lives, I learned that all three were far from the ste¬
reotypical suppressed woman writers I had imagined. I was awed by
Dorr’s fortitude in a male-dominated field. I was surprised by Dunton’s
introverted, yet multi-talented and industrious nature. I was charmed
by (and maybe somewhat jealous of) Gilchrist’s determination and ef¬
fortless grace. While this work is primarily a homage to the literary
works of these wom-en and their impact on Rutland’s history, it is also
a glimpse into the lives of three people worth remembering. One of the
most im-portant, yet often overlooked factors in understanding history
is to take into account the humanity of those we read about.

A special thanks to Carolynn Ranftle and Lorraine Bargmann for
their tmwavering support throughout this process.

The Quarterly is published by the Rutland Historical Society, 96 Center Street,
Rutland VT 05701-4023. Co-editors; Jim Davidson and Jacob Sherman.
Copies are $2 each plus $1 per order. Membership in the Society includes
a subscription to the Quarterly and the Newsletter. Copyright © 2017 The
Rutland Historical Society, Inc. ISSN 0748-2493.__

2

Women Writers of Rutland

by Stephanie Billow

Julia C.R. Dorr

Family and Early Life

No study of Rutland’s literary legacy would be complete without men¬
tion of Julia C.R. Dorr. She was born Julia Caroline Ripley in Charles¬
ton, South Carolina on February 13, 1825. Charleston was the birth¬
place of her mother, Zulma Caroline Thomas Ripley, who died when
Julia was only eighteen months of age. However her father, William
Young Ripley, hailed from Middlebury, Vermont and had established
himself as a prominent civic force in Rutland County during the 1800s.
Ripley had worked in the mercantile business from a very young age,
an occupation which took him from Middlebury to Charleston and later
to New York City. By 1830, Ripley was independently wealthy and re¬
turned to Middlebury, along with his daughter Julia, to enjoy his retire¬
ment at the ripe age of thirty-two. However, Ripley’s retirement did not
last long and seven years after having settled in Middlebury, Ripley
moved to Rutland to undergo several enterprises. During his time in
Rutland, Ripley managed the first large, well-organized marble compa¬
ny in the county from 1844 to 1865 (at which point, his three sons from
his second marriage to a Middlebury woman took over the business
and the company was henceforth known as “Ripley and Sons”). In addi¬
tion to being a marble mogul, Ripley helped found the Rutland Coimty
Bank in 1861 and later served as president. Adjacent from that very
bank, Ripley built the Rutland Opera House in 1868 (which tragically
burned down in 1875) and focused great philanthropic effort towards
the Methodist Troy Conference Academy, which would later be known
as the Ripley Female College (today, this institution is Green Mountain
College).^

‘ Purdy, Elaine. “Ripley, William Young”, Rutland Historical Society

Julia’s early life was greatly influenced by her father’s industrious
I nature and wealth. After her mother’s death, Julia was sent to live with
a Mrs. Hasting Warren of Middlebury as her father had moved to New
York on account of his trade. Two years later, Ripley had moved back
to Vermont for his retirement and settled with Julia at a farmhouse

near Middlebury. Another subsequent two years later, Julia would And
herself older sibling to William Young Warren Ripley, the first child of

4

kitland historical society

Willi:uii Y(MinK ItipU'.V :>ii<l -)niu‘ M(>l..s.v Wmi tcui l{i|)lc\y (likc^ many ol Uu^
lii|)loys, William Young Warren would earn his fame through military
achievement during the Civil War, for which he earned the Congres¬
sional Medal of Honor).

Julia and her many half-sihlings would know a life few of Rutland
County knew at the time. This was a life brimming with opportunity
and grandeur, and most importantly, opened the door to a quality edu¬
cation. Julia spent her youth amongst the tomes of her father’s exten¬
sive library and began writing poetry from the age of twelve (though she
kept this hobby a secret from her family by hiding her poems). Given his
dedication to the Ripley Female College, it is clear that Ripley stood as
a champion of women’s education and this was extended to his daugh¬
ter, who benefitted not only from extensive tutoring at home, but also
from stints in schools such as the Middlebury Female Seminary and the
Methodist Troy Conference Academy.^

Literary Career

In 1847, Julia married Seneca Milo Dorr of Chatham, New York, at
the age of twenty-two. The two lived in Ghent, New York for ten years
after their marriage®. During this time, Julia began her public liter¬
ary career. Her first notable publication came when she won one of ten
one-hundred dollar prizes offered by Sartain’s Union Magazine in 1848
for her story Isabelle Leslie. From that point on, it seemed Julia s pen
was never left idle. In 1854, Dorr published her first novel. Farming-
dale, under the nom de plume of Caroline Thomas. Two years later.
Dorr published her second novel, Lanmere, but this time, under her
own name. With her writing career on the rise, the Dorrs were planning
to head westwards in 1857, yet on a visit to Rutland that very year,
the couple opted to move to Julia’s childhood state instead. There, the
Dorrs built “the Maples”, the famed estate where Dorr would live out
the remainder of her days.

2 Cullina, Dr. James. “Rutland Historical Society Quarterly, Volume IV No.
3”, 1974.

® Dorr, James Byron. “Some Branches of the Dorr Family Tree”, pg. 5-6.

5

MW tAWTAOr A fib, fyWMt iw.

M nrrt a KAncwotr. ^ IhA

Sartain’s Union Magazine circa 1850

Settled in Vermont, Julia’s literary life began to take shape on a local
and national level. Julia was gaining great acclaim for her works from
both readers and fellow writers. Her reputation amongst her contem¬
poraries was that of an artist reviving a dying traditional form and a
preserver of a poetic voice that was all too rare, especially (as many of
her male counterparts said) “for a woman”. In 1869, Dorr published her
first novel penned in Vermont, Sybil Huntington, and in 1872 published
her first volume of poems, Expiation. In the 1870s, the focus of Julia’s
publications shifted to mostly poetry.

(i

From 1871 to 1872, Dorr produced three books of poems. While her
short stories and novels had been fairly well received, it was her po¬
etry that gartered the attention and respect of her fellow writers and

The Maples

it remains her primary claim to fame. Dorr would continue to write
and publish poetry up until a few months before her death on Janu¬
ary 18th, 1913. In 1884, Seneca Milo Dorr left Julia a widow; an event
which spurned a new agenda for the writer’s career. Dorr spent the
later 1880s and 1890s traveling and writing travelogues such as Ber¬
muda, published in 1884, and The Flowers of England’s Face, which
was accompanied by Julia’s personal journal of pressed flowers from
her tour of the United Kingdom. These travelogues would prove to be
some of Dorr’s last works of substantial length.

7

RbTL/XND HISTORICAL SOCir.TY

Dorr in the Writers’ Realm

Julia had several friendships with literary powerhouses of the day,
including such notable figures as Ralph Waldo Emerson (with whom
she maintained a multi-year correspondence) and Dr. Oliver Wendell
Holmes. Holmes was a prominent writer and one of the founders of The
Atlantic Monthly (later, simply The Atlantic) in 1857 along with Emer¬
son and Harriet Beecher Stowe amongst others. The doctor-cum-writer
was a great admirer of Dorr’s work, or rather, of Dorr herself, and the
two took up a regular correspondence. Holmes spoke only the highest
of Dorr and her work, informing Julia upon one of her many visits to
his home in Boston that “You are not only one of the few women who
write really well, but I like you! I like your face and your voice and your
ways. It makes me feel better and happier to see you!”. Indeed, it seems
it was not only the quality of Dorr’s work that won her acclaim, but also
her charm. This popularity paid off with a deep-rooted connection to
the publishers of The Atlantic Monthly, who welcomed her literary sub¬
missions. This relationship between Dorr and the publishers, or more
specifically, between Dorr and Holmes, would last a lifetime and would
perhaps be highlighted in Dorr’s personalized invitation from the pub¬
lishers to Dr. Holmes’s seventieth birthday party.

Julia would also strike up a friendship with Edmund Clarence Sted-
man, with whom she would correspond for more than thirty years. Sted-
man had come from a similarly wealthy family as Dorr, but when his
father died, Stedman and his young siblings were left to fend for them¬
selves. In his youth, Stedman had turned to story and essay writing as
a means of gaining income for his family. As an adult, Stedman main¬
tained a flourishing literary career and, in 1904, was one of the seven
people in the country to be selected for membership to the American
Academy for Arts and Letters. Stedman held a great appreciation for
Julia’s work and commended her revival of traditional poetic form. Al¬
though it is unclear as to whether or not Dorr shared his distress, the
Vermont poet was sympathetic to Stedman’s concerns about the oncom¬
ing death of literary culture. This concern is expressed in a letter circa
1877, in which Stedman claims “Our people really don’t care about po¬
etry, i.e. good poetry. They like the domestic and sentimental verse well
enough, but altogether prefer to read novels...”. While Dorr herself was
also a well-received novelist in addition to being a nationally renowned

poet, it is likely she did not replicate Stedman’s condemnation of the
novel. However, Julia did reciprocate the desire to revive literary cul¬
ture. To this, Rutland owes the beginnings of its artistic renaissance^

left: Oliver Wendell Holmes circa 1880
right: Edmund Clarence Stedman circa 1903

* Gilchrist, Beth Bradford. “Letters to Julia C.R. Dorr”.

y

WIKIPEDIA COMMONS

Dorr in Rutland

Like her father before her, Julia became a prominent member of
Rutland society. She was a champion of the Rutland Free Library As¬
sociation and was their first president. She organized the “Friends in
Council” club in 1877, which acted as a social club for women wishing
to enrich their lives by exploring literary subjects and partaking in aca¬
demic debates. Julia ran club meetings in her own home for two years
until the onset of “The Fortnightly Club”. This group, spearheaded by
Dorr alongside members of the Rutland Congregational Church, was a
similar to its predecessor in that its purpose was to enrich the lives of
local women (specifically the female members of the church) through
literary work and intellectual conversations which were held, as the
name might suggest, every two weeks. “The Fortnightly Club” became
a staple of the Rutland art scene and would attract many other writing
women with time (in fact, the club is still active today and continues to
meet at the Congregational Church)®.

Indeed, Dorr’s work as a writer and involvement in her community
solidified her place in Vermont’s history. Her life bears a tone reminis¬
cent of her work; something dictated by astute observation, introspec¬
tion, and a lofty air that leaves us with an image of a woman who seems
more a literary character than an actual person. Between her renowned
regality and her devotion to her craft, Julia C.R. Dorr’s legacy is that of
Rutland’s literary matron.

® Austin, Michael. “Rutland Historical Society Quarterly Volume 18 No. 2”,
1988

10

Julia C.R. Dorr circa 1890

i

RUTLAND HISTORIC AL SOC'ICTY

A portrait of William Young Ripley’s children. From left to right:
Agnes Warren, Julia Caroline, Mary Jane, Helen Jane,
William Young Warren, Charles Henry, and Edward Hastings

Julia C.R. Dorr’s bedroom in the Maples, showing her desk.

RUTLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY_ RUTI.A>

1

MRS. JULI A C. R. D ORR DEAD-

Poet and Author Was a Contempo¬
rary of Holmes and Emerson.

RUTLAND. Vt,. Jan. IS.—Mra. Julia
Caroline Ripley Dorr, poet and author, a
contemporary of Holmes, Longfellow,
Emerson, and Lowell, died at her home
here to-day. aged 87.

Mrs. Dorr was born In Charleston. S. C.,
Feb. .13, 1$25, the daughter of William
Young Ripley. Her mdther died while

Mrs. Don* was still a child, and In 1830
her father took her to Vermont, where
she received her education. From her
earliest years Mrs. Dorr was accustomed
to write poetry, but no poem was ever
published until two years after her mar¬
riage. She was married in 1847 to Seneca
M. Dorr, a prominent lawyer and banker
of New York.

After her marriage Mrs. Dorr contrib¬
uted to the magazines, chiefly poems, with
an occasional short story. Her first book
venture was a novel called '* Farming-
dale,'* published in 1854 under the nom de
plume of Caroline Thomas. This was fol¬
lowed by " Lanmere," “ Sybil Hunting-
ton.” and a volume of poems called ” Ex¬
piation, ” all published under her own
name. Altogether she published more
than fifteen x'Olumes of poems.

■ Ml'S. Dorr numbered among her friends
such writers as Emerson, Holmes, Lowell,
Julia ‘Ward Howe, and the late Richard
Watson Gilder. With Dr. Holmes Mrs.
Dorr carried on a correspondence for
more than twenty years.

Mrs. Dorr had spent the greater part
of her life at her home. The Maples, in
Ku'Jand. malclng only an occasional visit
to the home of her daughter, Mrs. Zulma
Delacey Steele of Flatbush, Brooklyn.

Julia C.R. Dorr’s obituary from The New York times circa 1913.

IJ

RUTLAND HISTORICAL SOCIFTY

Edith Kellogg Dunton

Early Life and Career Before Writing

Edith was born on December 28th, 1875 in Rutland, Vermont to Judge
Walter Chipman Dunton and Miriam Barrett Dunton. She would live
out her childhood and early education in Rutland, living at 15 Wash¬
ington Street until her departure for Smith College in 1893®. There,
Edith flourished as a student, editor of the school’s Monthly publication,
and gaining experience that would prove her greatest inspiration for
her later works. After graduating in 1897, Edith was active in Smith
Alumnae publications and network^. Her involvement at Smith would
remain prominent for many years, as she helped establish a summer
nursing school at the college in the midst of World War One to aid sol¬
diers. After the war, Edith was crucial in founding Smith’s “Farming
and Shares”, a program that sent workers to rural France to rebuild.
Right out of college, Edith returned to Vermont to start work at Rut¬
land High School as an English teacher®. She taught there until 1899,
when she returned to college to pursue her master’s degree.

Edith Dunton ^vas famed during her
Freshman and Sophornore years for her
choice of boarding places. She was a keen ob¬
server of human nature, especially among the
facility, and displayed a truly prophetic insight
in the matter of preparing lessons. She was
eminent in Whately debates, energetic on the
Monthly board, and deserving of much credit
for the number of mute inglorious ^Miltons"
she di.seovered in the required themes classes.

Senior photo of Dunton in the 1893 Smith College Yearbook

^ Ranftle, Carolynn. “Historically Speaking Episode 147—Rutland Women in
History”, 2016.

Smith College Yearbook, 1897.

® Rutland Herald. June 17th-18th, 1898.

14

SMITH COLLEGE ARCHIVES

Cover of “Betty Wales, Senior” circa 1907

15

Literary Works

In 1904, Edith Kellogg Dunton published her first novel, Betty Wales:
Freshman, under the pen name Margaret Warde. This book was a huge
success and would spurn a series from Dunton about its titular char¬
acter as she navigated her freshman through senior years of college at
the fictional, all-women’s institution “Harding College”. Dunton’s expe¬
riences at Smith, no doubt, held great influence over her Betty Wales
college tales. Although one cannot determine what pieces of fiction were
inspired by facts from the author’s life, Harding bears several similari¬
ties to Smith (i.e. being an all-women’s college, having a residential
hall called Chapin, etc). Betty Wales was no stranger to pomp and cir¬
cumstance, but nonetheless, Dunton’s characters span a variety of ar¬
chetypes and all seem to encourage the reader to find their own place
at Harding. As Betty is told in the first book, “Every girl has her own
reasons for liking college—but every nice girl likes it”®.

Edith would pen and publish nine novels and one play starring Betty
Wales. Towards the end of the series, Dunton would go on to publish
several more books surrounding a new heroine, Nancy Lee, and would
later write a second play, “Is Your Name Smith?” in 1921. Beyond these
works, Dunton was also frequently printed in children’s magazines.
All of these works she wrote under the name Margaret Warde (save
“Is Your Name Smith?”). Dunton greatly enjoyed the secrecy involved
in her profession, reveling over being a nationally renowned novelist
whilst keeping her true identity a secret on a local level. Yet, this cha¬
rade was not long-lived. In 1911, Dunton revealed her identity to the
Booksellers’ League in New York City and subsequently, the nation.
Once a year, the Booksellers’ League held a “Ladies Night”. During this
annual event, the association opened its doors to women of the writ¬
ing world to join their male counterparts during their regular, monthly
meeting. There, Dunton was invited to share her work by the associa¬
tion’s president and was introduced by both her given name and pseud¬
onym. Edith would continue to use the nom de plume for the vast ma¬
jority of her future publications^®.

® Warde, Margaret. “Betty Wales: Freshman”, pg. 11.

Chapman, Edwin. “Ladies Night at the Booksellers’ League”, The Book¬
seller, Newsdealer and Stationer, vol. XXXIV, March 1st, 1911.

In addition to her novels and plays, Dunton was also a prolific pub¬
lisher of short stories, especially for children’s magazines. Below is the
first paragraph of a preliminary draft for Dunton’s story, A Dog for Dog
Days. The paragraph reads:

“I couldn’t imagine what August is for” Timmy told Aunt Lu, “ex¬
cept to get nice and warm” (Timmy was born in Cuba, you see,
and the hotter the weather, the better he liked it), “So I asked
the lawn-mow man” “and he says it’s for dog days. Uh, Aunt Lu,
couldn’t we get a nice little dog for dog days? I know you think
dogs are bothers, but couldn’t we bother, just for dog days?”^^

f

id w.

, jr ^ ^ a-/ ,

L .y-y

yd- « ^ ^ .

71 / '— ’ 'i-'

Dunton’s draft courtesy of RHS.

II

17

A Dog for Dog Days

BY MARGARET WARDE

t '^AuNT Lu, is August for dog
days?” asked Timmy. “The lawn
mow man says so.”

“ Why, yes,” said Aunt Lu,
“but”— She was going to explain
that dog days belong not to real
dogs, but to the dog star; but
Timmy, shrieking “0, goody!” for
no apparent reason, had vanLshed.

It was past supper time when, ver>- tireri and hot,
he got back. “I've found niy dog for dog days au<J
brought him home on a string,” he announced. “He
didn’t always want to come, but a nice man helped

I s'posed of course I could have a
dog for dog days and then not |L
have him any more!”

“0, dear!” sighed AuntLu. In
her heart she knew that every boy
ought to have a dog. And Miss
Electa had gone away, and nobody v.

wanted a mongrel, and Timmy
looked so woe-begone! “0, well!” said Aunt Lu.
“ If I let you kc^p him for August, you mustn't tease
to have him longer.”

“No, sir!” promised Timmy.

Miss Electa had named her dog Rover because he

Tied to the piazza post, where the nice man lyaJ
left him, was a dog. You couldn't even guess
breed; he was just dog!

“Where did you get—that?” demanded Aunt I,/U.

“From Miss Electa Appleby,” explained Timmy.
“She went off on the train, and if she isn't back after
dog days she said to give him to another boy.”
Smiling contentedly up at Aunt Lu, Timmy stooped
to pat his dog.

“Be careful!” she wjimed. “He might snap.

“He isn't cross,” declared Timmy. “The nice
man said he's 'most too friendly. He likes every¬
body, so he doesn't stay at home very well. But the
man thinks he'll stay with us. He says he guesses
Miss Electa wasn’t used to dogs' appetites.”

flog that followed Timmy that summer. For Timmy
) oonsetl tlie fields and woods all day. Aunt Lu never
worried. All the village boys did the same, and
nothing ever happened to them woree than tom
clothes and wet feel.

But one day Timmy didn’t come to dinner. Aunt
Lu telephoned around, but nobody had seen him.
Finally, trying not to worry, she ate her dinner alone.
But when it was two o'clock and three and nearly
four, she began to be thoroughly frightened. She
was standing on the porch, watching for Timmy and
thinking what to do, when, tearing up the road like
a whirlwind, came that to dog, Rover. All mud
and briers, he jumped right up on Aunt Lu, and how
he barked! He had something important to tell her.

'‘What do

“I should im¬
agine not!"
sniffed AuntLu.
“We'll give him
a real supper.
But, Timmy, we
can't have a dog
around here.”

‘‘But you
said so!” wailed
Timmy. “You
gaid August was
for dog days, so

you wdntf Rov¬
er? Where’s
master? '^^ere
is Timmy?”
cried Aunt Lu.

Rover barked
louder than ever
and ran back up
the road, across
two swampy
fields, and into
the woods, with

f

“A Dog for Dog Days” as it appeared in
“Boys and Girls Magazine” circa 1925.

RU TLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY

Dunton in Rutland

Edith was a reserved woman and her presence as a writer in Rutland
was a fairly understated one. In the 1920s, a temporary assistant librar¬
ian at the Rutland Free Library named Dottie wrote frequent letters to
her friend Alice (nicknamed “Kitty”), who lived in Wilmette, Illinois.
Dottie encountered Rutland writers on several occasions and in one of
her letters, she writes of her experience with Edith Kellogg Dunton:

“I made a startling discovery Wednesday evening. I had the
pleasure & honor of waiting on the author of the Betty Wales
books. I don’t know whether their popularity has reached Wil¬
mette or not but they are a series of college stories—-about sev¬
en—I guess and written by Margaret Warde. Just when some¬
one asked for....Miss Dunton’s [books], I decided it must be the
Rutland Miss Dunton, and I had heard that she wrote & I was
some surprised on looking up under Dunton to find the Betty
Wales books & that Margaret Warde was just a pen name and I
always [thought] Miss Dunton a rather mild old maid -she cer¬
tainly wouldn’t remind you of Betty Wales”^^.

Although Dottie was only in Rutland for a short while (until her ail¬
ing father become well enough for travel home) and did not know Dun¬
ton well, this description assures us that while Dunton’s books were
well-known on a national scale, she was by no means a local celebrity.
Furthermore, there is no evidence that Dunton held any especial ac¬
claim in the local writing community. She was not a member of the
Fortnightly Club and did not seem to have much contact with her local
literary contemporaries, i.e. Dorr and Gilchrist. Indeed, while Dunton
did not make the social impression of many of her peers, she was by
no means a lesser writer. Her prolific nature would lend itself nicely to
expanding the Betty Wales franchise.

Betty Wales: Businesswoman

In 1917, Edith Kellogg Dunton published Betty Wales: Business-wom¬
an, in which a now grown and graduated Betty Wales moves to New
York City alongside several of her friends to learn the dress-making
trade. A little after the release of the novel, the Goldman Costume Com-

“Dottie Letters”, RHS, 1920.

pany began its line of Betty Wales dresses. These dresses took on the
Betty Wales name as their trademark and when one purchased one
of the dresses, it came with a voucher so that the costumer could ac¬
quire a free copy of a Betty Wales book at their local bookstore. With
the increasing popularity of the book and dress franchise, the Goldman
Costume Company expanded their array of Betty Wales-related ser¬
vices, including themed birthday parties and Betty Wales giveaways.
The brand became a national and international (primarily in Canada)
sensation as more companies adopted the Betty Wales name and trade¬
mark^^.

Although it is unclear how connected Dunton was to the Betty Wales
Dress franchise, she must have given intellectual property rights to the
companies and benefitted greatly from the advertisement the dress-
production provided for her books.

While Betty Wales dresses are no longer in circulation, the dresses
can still be found and purchased as vintage items. Betty Wales: Busi¬
nesswoman would be the last Betty Wales book written by Dunton, who
passed away in 1944. She was buried in Evergreen Cemetery in Rut¬
land nearby fellow Rutland writer, Julia C.R. Dorr.

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Photo of Dunton featured in
her obituary. She passed
away at the age of 69.

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(above) Advertisement
for Betty Wales dresses.

(right) Trademark of
Betty Wales dresses -
the signature Plosh-kin

B]

KUTLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY

Beth Bradford Gilchrist

Early Life and The Life of Mary Lyon

Gilchrist circa 1902

Beth Bradford Gilchrist was bom in Rut¬
land on April 14th, 1879 to parents Mar¬
tha Elizabeth Earl Bradford and Dr. Oscar
James Gilchrist. She spent her youth in
Rutland, living in her family home at 79
Center Street. Gilchrist attended the local
Rutland public schools through high school
(in fact, Edith Kellogg Dunton was her Eng¬
lish teacher for the last two years of her high
school career). On June 17th 1898, Gilchrist
graduated from RHS as senior class presi¬
dent with “unclassified honors” alongside
Dunton’s own daughter. From there, Gil¬
christ was enrolled in the Mount Holyoke
College class of 1902^'^. Several of Beth’s
relatives had attended Holyoke, including
her mother who graduated in 1869 and two
aunts who were both members of the class

of 1871, although only one graduated. Eight years after earning her
undergraduate degree, Beth published her first book, The Life of Mary
Lyon, in 1910. The biography of Mount Holyoke’s founder earned Gil¬
christ acclaim not only as a writer, but also as a historian. In 1937, Gil¬
christ would be one of fourteen Mount Holyoke alumnae to receive the
college’s Medal of Honor for her work. The medal was “...awarded by
the Mount Holyoke Alumnae Association for the eminent service in pro¬
moting the effectiveness of the alumnae association, for signal service
in completing definite projects by the college, or for other noteworthy
services which strengthen the position of the college” and The Life of
Mary Lyon certainly warranted such distinction^®.

Rutland Herald. June 17th-18th, 1898.

“Alumnae Medal of Honor Recipients by Class”, Mount Holyoke College

00

THE TEMPLE UNIVERSITY
PHILADELPHIA

Horamber 9, 1909.

UiBB B. B. OllelxriBt,
fiatlaixidt Vt.

Dear Uadani:-

PraBident Coiwell reoeived yonr letter Inquiring oonoeruing
his reference to Mlee Uary I^jronB, and Bays that he has utterly
forgotten the eermon and does not recall whan or where it was
printed, althongjx he does recall dlBtinotly the fact well known
in Uaesachuaetts that the Oowemment of the State and the Legis¬
lature together gaye UIsb Lyons a reception at the State House.

II

II

A letter written in response to Gilchrist’s inquiries to President Conwell I
of Temple University (circa 1909). Beth conducted her own research for
the project and made several similar inquiries in her quest for informa¬
tion. In the corner of this note is scrawled “No proof- B.B. G. ”. I

I

r

Very truly youts.

Secretary.

23

MOUNT HOI.YOKE COLLEGE ARCHIVES

1 rJ 44^ * l^X<^ 4* M.

a^^r>

,^t- ^^ i

k^'cfrU*,c
1 ’{ZZF}^‘^

fiti t<‘,i^ji, tc^iv*-*- ^^4 CjC4
— />i/L Ci4Z£^ " M-tc ^

C y.<j/. • iL^-t~rC c^"&»>»«.e^ -«'»*<^

/Sfc.

J;dt^ JjhJ-ch^^^ jM itj^e!^ yU^C^,
., ^ ■'^f^-<-4VM k^tAAJ <^ 'C^y^fyk. f*^

A page from a draft from “The Life of Mary Lyon” circa 1908 by Beth
Bradford Gilchrist

L4

MOUNT HOLYOKE COLLEGE ARCHIVES

Later Literary Works

While Gilchrist gained initial success as a non-fiction writer, she
would go on to make a name for herself in the world of children’s fic¬
tion. Much like Dunton before her, Gilchrist began writing “girl’s fic¬
tion”. Some of her most popular works belong to this category, including
one of her longest works, Helen Over The Wall. Along with this novel
and the Life of Mary Lyon, Gilchrist would pen over a dozen books and
submitted dozens more of stories to children’s magazines. In addition
to these works, Gilchrist also wrote a “boy’s fiction” series revolving
around a school baseball team. This series she wrote under the pen
name John Prescott Earl and in fact pre-dates her publication of “The
Life of Mary Lyon”. This series was comparable in popularity to Gil¬
christ’s other works and the works of her contemporaries (including
Dunton’s Betty Wales series).

Best Booksy«rBoys & Girls

A West Point Cadet Betty Wales, B. A.

By C?ipt. Paul B* Malone, U, 5 .A> By Mar^rarot Wardo

The latent of the famous "West
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football, etc, Cloth binding. 91,25,

The lolly trip abroad of clever col¬
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T. TROXTUM HARira
Oreat Football Story

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The second book about athletica and the college
life of Bob Walters and friends. Cloth binding. $1.95,
In the Sfune Series
UAKINQ THE FRESHMAN TEAM

JOHN PRESCOTT EARL’S
New Story of School Life

On the school Team

A remarkable boya’ story, and the first of a Very
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f.turdy character and wholesome fun. Cloth hindtog.

Advert for children’s literature in “The Boston Evening Post”, Novem¬
ber 28th, 1908. Margaret Warde (Edith Dunton) and John Prescott
Earl (Beth Gilchrist).

25

BOSTON EVENING POS T

"ANIJ \-V(i CALL nils FAIR I'LAVf "

26

(left) Cover of “On the
School Team”

(below) Illustration
from “On the School
Team” by Ralph L.
Boyer circa 1908

ON THE
SCHGDL TEAM

JOHN PRESCOTT EARL

RUTLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY

Gilchrist in Rutland

With the exception of her work as John Prescott Earl, Gilchrist did
not write under a nom de plume and was known locally for her work.
Gilchrist was a prominent member of the writer’s community in Rut¬
land. She was a member of the Fortnightly Club (serving as president
for twenty-five years from 1929 to 1954) and had a strong relationship
with her literary mentor, Julia C.R. Dorr. Gilchrist served as Dorr’s
underling and admired the older woman’s work greatly. In large part,
it is thanks to Gilchrist that so many records of Dorr’s correspondence
with fellow writers and her involvement with the Fortnightly Club still
survive (as Gilchrist made a point of preserving Julia’s memory, both as
the writer and woman she was in life).

Gilchrist was a widely recognized face on the streets of Rutland. The
aforementioned stand-in, assistant librarian, Dottie, also encountered
Gilchrist at her workplace. She wrote to her friend Kitty about this
interaction:

“Do you remember the story Cinderella’s Grand-daughter that
came in the St. Nicholas? I don’t believe that I’ve told you that
the author, Beth Gilchrist, lives in Rutland and comes into the
library quite often. She is rather pretty, slim, and dark, and usu¬
ally wears lavender or purple”

The legacy of Gilchrist is not one easily forgotten, from her contribu¬
tions to academia, to her novels and short stories, and her pivotal role
in continuing the literary traditions of Rutland. Gilchrist passed away
in 1957 and is buri('d in Evergreen Cemetery in Rutland, Vermont.

27

“Alumnae Medal of Honor Recipients by Class” Mt. Holyoke College.

Austin, Michael. “Rutland Historical Society Quarterly, Volume 18 No.
2, 1968.

Chapman, Edwin. “Ladies Night at the Booksellers’ League”, The Book¬
seller, Newsdealer and Stationer, Vol. XXXIV, March 1, 1911.

Cullina, Dr. James, “Rutland Historical Society Quarterly, Volume IV
No. 3, 1974

Dorr, James Byron. “Some Branches of the Dorr Family Tree”.

Gilchrist, Beth Bradford. “Letters to Julia C. R. Dorr”.

Purdy, Elaine. “Ripley, William Young”, Rutland Historical Society.

Ranftle, Carolynn. “Historically Speaking Episode 147 — Rutland Wom¬
en in History”, 2016.

Rutland Herald, June 17-18, 1898.

Smith College Yearbook, 1897.

Warde, Margaret. “Betty Wales: Freshman, A Story for Girls”, 1924